IIM Jammu Hosts Basohli Painting Workshop: Revitalising a 300-Year-Old Artistic Tradition

New Delhi: IIM Jammu inaugurated its first Basohli Painting Workshop, celebrating the 300-year-old Pahari miniature tradition at the Jagti campus. The workshop honours master practitioners whose techniques, cultural memory, and aesthetic sensibilities continue to sustain one of the earliest schools of Himalayan miniature painting. Prof. B. S. Sahay, Director, IIM Jammu, presided over the inaugural ceremony held at the Mandapam Auditorium.

 

The event was graced by Ms. Shruti Awasthi, Regional Director, IGNCA Jammu; Prof. Jabir Ali, Dean of Faculty & Research; Prof. Nitin Upadhyay, Dean of Academics; Prof. Shyam Narayan Lal, Chairperson, Ānandam and Media & Publications Division; Brigadier (Retd.) Neeraj Soni, Co-Chairperson, Ānandam; and Cmdr. Kesavan Baskkaran, CAO, IIM Jammu. The program commenced with the ceremonial lighting of the lamp, signifying the pursuit of knowledge, creativity, and renewal.

 

Organized from 08 to 14 December 2025 at the Jalpan Kendra, the workshop is an initiative of Ānandam: The Centre for Happiness and the Painting Club, IIM Jammu, in collaboration with the Indira Gandhi National Centre for the Arts (IGNCA), Regional Centre Jammu. The week-long engagement offers students a rare opportunity to learn directly from GI-tag-certified Basohli women artists, custodians of traditional techniques involving natural pigments, handmade paper, sacred iconographic conventions, and intricate linework.

 

The workshop will immerse participants in the full creative process: pigment preparation, foundational sketching, stylization, border motifs, divine iconography, and final detailing. Instruction is led by the Basohli Painting Artists’ Ensemble, including:

 

• Shri Sohan Singh Billawria (Award-Winning Senior Artist)
• Ms. Rajni Bala (State Awardee)
• Ms. Sonam Jamwal (State Awardee)
• Ms. Aastha Billowaria
• Ms. Shivakshi Sharma
• Ms. Nitika Mehra
• Ms. Simran
• Ms. Ranjali
• Ms. Rekha
• Ms. Kanchan

 

 

The formal inauguration of the workshop concluded with a ribbon-cutting ceremony led by Prof. B.S. Sahay, Director, IIM Jammu, alongside the senior Basohli artists. Basohli painting, distinguished by bold contours, vibrant natural pigments, and expressive narrative composition, remains a foundational Pahari miniature tradition. Beyond its aesthetic appeal, it serves as a repository of regional mythology, devotion, and Himalayan imagination. The workshop advances cultural literacy, supports intangible heritage preservation, and aligns with NEP 2020, which advocates embedding Indian Knowledge Systems within contemporary education. Through hands-on practice, interactions with master artists, storytelling circles, and documentation support from IGNCA, students participate in a living continuum that preserves and revitalizes one of India’s most treasured artistic legacies. IM Jammu extends a warm welcome to the Basohli Painting Artists’ Ensemble and invites the community to celebrate this confluence of art, identity, and cultural resurgence—where each brushstroke reflects India’s enduring artistic heritage.